Following an early leak of their
fourth album Reflektor, Arcade Fire tweeted out a YouTube video of the entire
album (listen to it above!) paired with footage from the 1959 French-Brazilian film Black Orpheus, which
frontman Win Butler said was a big inspiration for the double-disc record.

From
the mutant disco of "Reflektor" to the gentle finale "Afterlife,"
this is a remarkably diverse album, both musically and culturally. So while you delve
into Reflektor, here's our by-the-numbers breakdown of Arcade Fire's latest to
help you get the most out of the album.

Songs With Religious References: 4

"Reflektor" and "Here
Comes the Night Time" speak dismissively of heaven, "Flashbulb
Eyes" is about cameras stealing souls and "Afterlife" obviously mentions the afterlife. "We Exist" addresses people
"praying that we don't exist" and also references Judas betraying
Jesus with the line, "Not the first betrayed by a kiss."

Number of Songs You Can Shake Your
Ass To: 4

"Reflketor," "Here Comes
the Night Time," "It's Never Over (Oh Orpheus)" and "Afterlife" all have hip-swinging rhythms we assume producer James Murphy played a strong role
in perfecting.

Greek Mythological Figures Referenced:
2

In Greek mythology, Orpheus was a
peerless musician whose wife, Eurydice, died on their wedding day. He used his unmatched musical abilities to charm his way into the underworld in an ultimately unsuccessful
attempt to bring her back to life. Reflektor's cover (inset below) features a sculpture done by
Auguste Rodin—a French artist considered the father of modern sculpture—in 1893 about the tragic
husband and wife.

Straightforward Rockers: 2.5

Obviously the whole album is
"rock," but two songs (and half of another) stand out as textbook rock
n' roll. "You Already Know" is a jangly, propulsive number,
"Normal Person" is a roughly-mixed rocker and "Joan of Arc"
has a punky start before turning into a relatively familiar indie joint.

Songs about Fickle Fans: 2

"We Exist" seems to be
about experiencing intense scrutiny from AF fans, while "Afterlife"
looks forward to when "all the hangers-on are done hanging on."

Theoretical Physics References: 1

"Supersymmetry" is a
shout-out to supersymmetry, a theory proposed by some physicists that every boson
(a subatomic particle) has a corresponding fermion (such as an electron,
proton or neutron) of the same mass. There is only indirect evidence that this is
true. (Yes, we had to look this up.)

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